D&D 5e Road Test

Elf

As the first children of the world Elves are the closest of all the common races to the fundamental forces of creation. Their position as the first of the races also means that in some ways the lack the precision of spirit and form granted to the other inhabitants of Shegearth.

Ability Score Increase: Your Wisdom score increases by 2 and your Charsima score increases by 1.Age: Elves reach maturity at age 13 or 14, and fall into deep sleep around 30. If cared for, their comatose bodies may live for another 6 or 7 years beyond that. Alignment:Size: Elves stand about 5 feet tall, and weight about 120 lbs.Speed: Your base walking speed is 30ft.

Dark Bodies, Distinct Souls

Elves vary little in appearance. Those that are even a couple inches from the average might be considered exceptionally tall or short. They have medium to dark brown skin, black wavy hair, large eyes with orange irises and rigid pointed ears about 4" length. They are also marked with distinctive mottled black patches that appear on portions of their arms and torso. These too do not vary widely with all individuals bearing one of a dozen or so patterns.

This homogeneity means that all races, including other Elves find it is a difficult task to tell one Elf apart from another by sight alone. However, this presents little trouble in social situations as all Elves have a distinct personal Aura that all living beings sense. One always instinctively knows which Elf one is dealing with, so long as you have met before.

Fragments of the pastl

Unlike the later races, the souls Elves do not dissipate entirely when they die. Small portions find their way to the newly and soon to be born, imparting fragments of memories from the deceased’s life. In most cases Elves have a particularly strong connect to the soul of a departed called an Imprint. The imprint carries with it much of the skill and experience the previous elf had in life as well as whole memories sometimes almost a minute long. Imprints happen without regard to blood, status, or geography. They can even form out of previously disjointed fragments of soul, drifting across a generations.

If they have any means to avoid it Elves rarely follow the same path through life as the individual as their imprinted soul did. The connections are strong enough to give them a level of familiarity that stifles curiosity, but too distant to retain enthusiasm or passion. Even Elves born into luxury and status will almost always give up their comfortable life if imprinted with the soul of one similarly well-off or powerful.

Close Together
Elves to a much greater extent than the other races live in larger towns and cities. Without as much need for extensive farm or grazing land as other peoples they have a natural to form more large communities. Their architecture varies greatly but like them, tends to be compact, simple in design and densely packed.

Diverse Experience
*Perhaps owing to their inherited experiences of mundane lives, Elves are naturally driven to seek novel experiences. These can be hard to find at home or even with simple travel. Exploration, discovery and danger are certain to give them experiences unique enough that no fragment within them recalls it.

Fundamental Presence: All living creatures are automatically aware of Elves within 10ft of them. They are also aware of if they know the Elf or not and if they do, who the individual is.Imprinted Expertise: Choose a second background. You gain the skill, tool and language proficiency from that background but not any other benefits. It may changeInnate Magic: You know any one Cantrip from any class.